Canceled NBC Comedy’s Future Just Got Dimmer

An NBC comedy series with the proverbial "small but loyal cult following" was looking as if it still had a chance even after the network canceled it recently, but hopes for a future for "Community" have suffered a setback.

EW.com’s Inside TV reports that talks between studio Sony Pictures Television, which has been shopping the cult hit since its cancellation, and Hulu, which was talking about picking up "Community" for a sixth season, have stalled.

“Talks have stumbled at the most promising distributor, the streaming outlet Hulu. But we’re told Sony has another undisclosed buyer interested in the show and that Hulu still ‘wants to be part of the conversation,’ so don’t give up hope yet,” the story notes.

The show, created by Dan Harmon and starring Joel McHale and Gillian Jacobs, recently wrapped its fifth season on NBC, with the network announcing shortly after the season finale that it was pulling the plug.

Besides online streamer Hulu, another outlet that has been talked about as a possible landing place for "Community" is Comedy Central.

While the show premiered to a 3.8 rating in the key 18-49 demo and 7.89 million total viewers back in fall 2009, those numbers had dwindled to a 1.0 in 18-49 and 2.87 million viewers by the NBC finale in April 2014.

The report notes that actor contracts for "Community" expire June 30, meaning there's some time pressure attached to landing a deal to revive the show.